That's generally true, but I feel like this was an exception since it was such a big game, and RM were already missing so many key players. He really stepped up defensively (and made up for the fact that playing with Carvalho is worse than having 10 men), not to mention scoring the late tying goal.

Holy fucking shit Raphael Varane.

-1

I wonder how this will affect Bob and the national team. I don't exactly keep up with the Egyptian domestic league, but I imagine most of the national team players ply their trade within the country. This can't be good news for their WC hopes.

But the Truth and Reconciliation commission probably takes place somewhere cool!

Epic burn, bro.

+1

Wait, why are these on Deadspin now? I preferred when this series, along with the rest of Hamilton's terrible screeds, was isolated to Gawker. MORE MAGARY, LESS NOLAN! OCCUPY DEADSPIN!

Are you getting royalties now that Deadspin is using "No Such Dame" as the hashtag for this whole mess?

Holy shit, that is tremendous. +1

I don't get it.

Yeah, but Brazilians aren't born with any more instinctive soccer creativity than Americans. It's that they all play it straight out of the womb, so that's where the skill comes from. If all of our best athletes did the same, we could match up in the intangibles too.

You may be right. I'm just thinking of someone with a massive wingspan who would be an imposing keeper. Westbrook is an interesting choice, maybe he'd like to give the MLS a shot.

That would be wonderful. I would take pretty much any professional athlete, even Joba Chamberlain, over Jermaine Jones.

True, and I'm not saying all freak athletes would automatically be awesome soccer players. But there are a lot who, if they trained at it the way they have at their current sport, could be stars there too.

To the point of pro athletes potentially excelling at another sport... This has always been my theory (not a very original one, but whatever) for why the US isn't better at soccer. Our best athletes simply don't play it.

Garon and Lindback may not be "elite" goalies, but the Bolts won't part with their franchise star in order to get one who may only be marginally better.

True, the Ivorians do tend to underachieve despite their talent. They're like the Dutch of Africa.

That's true. The Euro is obviously stacked with talent, but AFCON just seems the most crazy and weirdly entertaining of all the regional tournaments.

To be fair, I didn't hear about it until a few days ago. Huge disappointment, because I'd love to see Ba and Cisse up against Drogba and the Toures in the final.